Jennifer Aniston and Owen Wilson get the pick of the litter in 'Marley & Me.'

HOLLYWOOD -- "Marley & Me," the big-screen version of John Grogan's warm-and-fuzzy memoir of life with his lovable galoot of a Labrador, wears its cuteness pedigree on its sleeve -- or on its movie poster, to be precise.

That poster consists of a single image: a wide-eyed and downright adorable Lab puppy, with a big red ribbon around his neck. The tagline: "This Christmas, heel the love."

All together now: "Awwwww."

But "Marley & Me," which opens on Christmas Day, is more than puppy dogs and pratfalls. Anyone familiar with Grogan's wildly popular book, subtitled "Life and Love With the World's Worst Dog," knows that for all of its well-timed humor, and for its welcome but rare portrayal of a marriage gone right, it also deals with some moving and heavy real-life issues.

At a recent advance screening, tears flowed liberally as the audience exited the theater.

In talking about the film with reporters earlier this month at the Four Seasons Hotel in Beverly Hills, "Marley" stars Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aniston both said those layers of emotion were part of what drew them to the roles.

Judd, one of 22 dogs to play the title pooch in 'Marley & Me,' adds a definite cuteness to the movie's poster.

DIRECTOR SHOWS LOYALTY TO MAN'S BEST FRIEND

W.C. Fields once warned, "Never work with animals or children," but director David Frankel didn't listen.

In "Marley & Me," Frankel worked with both, and he came up with a definite opinion on which he would rather have on the set.

"I think that the W.C. Fields line about kids is true; I would avoid them," Frankel said earlier this month at a press event in Beverly Hills to promote the big-screen version of John Grogan's popular book about an unruly dog and his human family.

"I actually have kids myself, so I thought I was prepared, but the toddlers and the infants were a challenge to work with. Even an untrained dog responds better to its cues, and you can manipulate them a little bit with a treat, which babies don't do."

The movie, with a storyline that spans 13 years, required the use of 22 dogs as the leading canine.

"There are so many dogs that are playing Marley, it was like doing a Vietnam movie, where you didn't want to get too close," Wilson cracked. "You know that dog might not be there" the next day.

So how did the filmmakers get the dogs to misbehave so convincingly?

"We didn't train them," head animal trainer Mark Forbes said. "We did what I like to call 'anti-training.' We just encouraged every bad behavior."

(Wilson: "I think you worked with my dog.")

Even then, though, the dogs performed admirably, Frankel said, referring specifically to Clyde, an adult Labrador retriever who worked on the film.

"I was very pleased," Frankel said. "The most important thing was to not rehearse him, because he's a natural. He was always best on the first take, so we would prepare and then try to grab the action on take one."

-- Mike Scott

"That's what was nice about the movie," Wilson said. "The situations didn't ever feel contrived, where it was like, 'I don't really ...' Everything felt sort of relatable."

Added Aniston, "I think people go to the movies and they escape, with these big crazy plot lines, and here is a movie where people are actually going, 'That's me!' or 'I did that' or 'I walked through that.'"

Parents of young children who are hoping to treat the whole family to a light and airy Christmas story, however -- assuming they're not among the countless fans who have read the book -- might brace for a difficult discussion on the drive home from "Marley & Me."

The film earned a PG rating from the Motion Picture Association of America, for "thematic material, some suggestive content and language." And not to give too much away here, but as Wilson and Aniston discussed the film, joined by director David Frankel and co-star Eric Dane, famous tear-jerking family films such as "Bambi" and "Old Yeller" quite naturally worked their way into the conversation.

At its heart, "Marley & Me" is about a man and his dog -- specifically about a newly married newspaper columnist and the incorrigible dog he and his wife adopt as they start their lives together. Named Marley, for reggae icon Bob, the dog shows an amazing capacity for domestic destruction, but he's also got an amazing capacity for unconditional love, the Grogans discover.

Amid the chaos, and between the chewed-up sofas, Marley teaches his human family over and over that every little thing gonna be alright, indeed.

And that's the key to the story, Frankel said, adding that any circle-of-life discussions that the film generates between parents and children are bound to be healthy and definitely worthwhile. The father of young children himself, Frankel said he's looking forward to taking his kids to the film, and he welcomes their questions.

"I think it's generally a movie for the whole family," he said. "One of the reasons that drew me to make the movie in the first place, I was encouraged by my 10-year-old nieces, who said it was their favorite book ever, it was the funniest book they had ever read, and by my in-laws in their late 70s, who thought it was the most beautiful book they had ever read about life. ...

"For me, it is a movie for people of all ages, and I think there's real merit in marketing it in a way that families will go. ... I think that's the joy of family: discussing aspects of life, the good and the bad."

Wilson, who plays Grogan in the film, agreed. "Sometimes, maybe, as an adult you kind of underestimate kids' abilities to deal with stuff," he said.

Even if it doesn't fit neatly into the usually shiny and happy Hollywood formula for family films, "Marley & Me" is based on a real story, so no serious consideration was given to tweaking the story just for the sake of making it more audience-friendly.

"The way people love that book so much, it wasn't really a choice," Wilson said. "You have to tell the story, honor that story."

Part of the appeal of the story, in fact, is that it is true and, to a degree, fairly simple, according to Aniston, who plays Owen's wife in the film. She suspects people will feel a connection with the film, and with the Grogans. On the day they shot a particularly emotional scene for "Marley & Me" -- one in which the Grogan family is gathered together on the front lawn of their home -- she felt the connection as well, she said.

A scene from the big-screen adaptation of John Grogan's book 'Marley & Me.'

"Those were really hard," Aniston said. "Those were the days I couldn't read the sides in the trailer in the morning, because you were sort of just bubbling over with emotion, and (I was) just hoping that I would be able to look at the lines while I was on set and remember them."

"I think what people don't understand," Frankel added, "is how hard it is. Jen did six or seven takes of that scene on a cloudy afternoon, and we had finished the scene, then the sun came out. It looked so much more beautiful, and I said to Jen, 'OK, now we're going to do it again.'"

"That's what made me cry," Aniston cracked.

Wilson had a similar moment, where he found himself nervously hoping he wasn't going to have to use fake tears. He said he didn't.

That's music to Frankel's ears, a sign that he was barking up the right tree in re-telling such a beloved book.

"I think there's a universal yearning for unconditional love," Frankel said, "and I think that's what the book is about, and I hope that's what the movie is a little bit."